This El Niño will be the hottest by a huge marginThu, 23 Jul 2026 18:00:39 +0000 The super El Niño now developing in the tropical Pacific has a 90 per cent chance of becoming the strongest in 150 years, breaking global temperature records and unleashing extreme weather | |
Extremely basic AI prompt cracks decades-old maths problemThu, 23 Jul 2026 15:32:55 +0000 For the second time in a week, a long-standing conjecture has been disproved by artificial intelligence, highlighting the advanced mathematical capabilities of ChatGPT and its ilk | |
Can sounds make plants grow bigger? A start-up says they canThu, 23 Jul 2026 15:00:00 +0000 Haivya has developed acoustic signals designed to influence plant development, and its trials reportedly show large yield increases in soybean, pepper and cannabis crops | |
Fields medal 2026: Work on unifying laws of physics wins maths prizeThu, 23 Jul 2026 13:32:00 +0000 Mathematicians who helped unify laws of physics and cracked decades-old problems in geometry are among this year's recipients of the Fields medal | |
Dark energy doesn’t exist, claims controversial paperThu, 23 Jul 2026 13:00:00 +0000 An analysis of supernovae argues that the universe’s expansion is not speeding up, so there is no need for dark energy to exist to explain it | |
New Scientist recommends Anish Kapoor’s show at the Hayward GalleryThu, 23 Jul 2026 09:43:11 +0000 Viscera, voids and light-gobbling Vantablack conspire to disturb and amaze in Anish Kapoor’s new exhibition, which has heavy nods to the nature of reality, science and religion | |
Orcas filmed making sunfish explode by ramming them at high speedThu, 23 Jul 2026 04:00:00 +0000 Orcas have been seen smashing into sharp-tail sunfish so hard that the fish bursts into thousands of fragments, perhaps as a form of play as well as food processing | |
More than a gut feelingThu, 23 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Long overlooked, the connection between our gut microbes and brain is yielding new insights into mental health | |
Why open-source software can be both good and badWed, 22 Jul 2026 17:00:00 +0000 Software that is free to use creates many opportunities – not all of which are good | |
This twisty sci-fi thriller is a fantastic debut from Isabel J. KimWed, 22 Jul 2026 17:00:00 +0000 Sublimation, in which a person can split into two when crossing an international border, is tip-top stuff. Don't miss it, says science-fiction columnist Emily H. Wilson | |